Memories Long Since Past
by Runi-chan
Summary: After all those years, it was still hard to think back; on the destruction, on the loss, on his fall from grace.


My very first piece of Star Wars fanfiction, inspired, of course, by Episode III. I've taken a few liberties, because I'm not familar with the book story lines, and if anyone was with Yoda when he went to Degobah. I'm sorry if I don't have a total grip on Yoda's speech; he has** the** oddest syntax I've ever seen.

Disclaimer: If you think I own Star Wars, you're seriously insane. I mean, I wasn't born until six years _after_ ROTJ came out. So how, exactly, can I own something that was (semi)completed years before I was born?

EDIT: To correct minor mistakes; namely, Yoda's age and his familarity with Luke.

* * *

Degobah was not a planet any normal being would pick as a home. It was swampy, murky, dank,dense..and not one senient being lived on it. Not a one. 

But this was exile, not a lesiurely choice. He had failed; not one of the Jedi had survived. They were all gone. Three were left, and one...he didn't want to think of Anakin. The young Skywalker; memories of his betrayal were still too fresh in the aged Jedi master's mind.

"Master Yoda?"

The sagely old being turned his head to meet eyes with young Obi Wan. There was a pain beyond years in the boy's eyes.

And that was rightly so; he had lost his master, and now his Padawan...and not just lost him, lost him to the Sith.

The master's heart, could it have done so, broke a little more.

"Question, you have?"

Obi Wan nodded curtly.

"Must you choose exile? Others could learn a great deal from you..Anakin's son, Luke, could.."

Yoda waved his hand, shaking his head.

"More harm than good, that would do. Learn of his parentage on his own, the infant must"

Obi Wan nodded, turning his head away sadly.

"If he ever comes to me, what do I say?"

The master paused.

"The truth, young Obi Wan."

Kenobi shook his head.

"I cannot tell him everything, master Yoda. Do you intend me to tell him what his father has done? What _I_ have done to Anaki-"

Yoda held up his hand asking for a pause. He rested it on top of his walking stick.

"Forced, you were, to maim your Padawan. Turned to the Dark Side, he did. But hope there is still, Young master. The boy."

Obi Wan wiped the tears from his face.

"I see. When the time is right, I will tell him,"

Obi Wan's attention turned to the swampy land in front of him. He joined the Jedi Master at the bottom of the ramp. Why the sagely old being would chose a planet like this was very clear, though at the moment, Obi Wan did not think it made sense: _Why _would the master want to live somewhere where the only thing to do was meditate? To dwell on the broken Republic, on Anakin's betrayal? On failure?

"Where will you be living, master Yoda," Obi Wan asked, "This place is nothing but swamp"

Yoda chuckled, pointing to a grove of trees. Obi Wan sighed.

"Would you like me to carry you there, master?"

The Jedi master shook his head.

"Walk, I can"

He watched as Obi Wan ascended the ramp, called out a goodbye.

"Master Yoda, will we meet again?"

The Jedi master smiled.

"If in this life not, the next, we will"

The ship sped away from Degobah, never to return.

Yoda looked up from his meditation; had that really been so long ago? Twenty-one years since the fall of the Republic, since Anakin's betrayal; since the slaughter of those who were supposed to protect peace.

And only three had gotten away. Himself, Obi Wan, and Anakin...fated to never again meet.

Anakin; just thinking back, it hurt. The minute he had felt it; worse that Aalderan, worse than the souls on the Sith-aligned Death Star; worse than any pain that had reached him before. All of those who were Jedi; slain. Not just in an instant; it must have taken a while. A great, **long **while.

It was perhaps the realization of the Younglings' death...and who was responsible for it..that was hardest of all to handle. He, in all his years, had hardly cried. And even then, only as a young one. The Jedi way did not allow for him to feel in such a way, and in time, led him to enlightenment.

But not total. There were flaws, he would readily admit, in the Jedi way. It was not meant for all. Especially not for Anakin.

He had **not** stopped Qui Gonn. Of the things he regretted, that was not one. He did not regret. He, like the others, had not seen it. There was a collective agreement that the boy could change. That the Jedi way would lead him to the knowledge that the others slowly had gained.

It had been hard to listen to Obi Wan tell of Anakin's fall. Of his injury. Of what Obi Wan had done to him. He had not shown it then, but his heart had broken. He closed his eyes, ran his hand over his brow, sighed...but there was no indication of tears.

And still now, he had not wept. He had to remind himself that to grieve the loss of the Jedi; of what was, essentially, a family; would be wrong. He had even told Anakin so.

But it was not a thing he would ever forget. The dull, aching pain was always with him, and it was perhaps that which would eventually take him from the physical world. Nearly nine hundreds years, and that would be the thing that took him. It made him laugh.

He had only survived because he was so learned in the Force. Because he could sense the attack coming.

It was easy to lose those with great potential. It had happened to Anakin because he was afraid. It had happened to Palpatine _long_ before the Council even was aware. And there was a very distinct possiblity Anakin's son would be lost too.

But Luke, thought the wisened being, had the chance to redeem his father, a chance to save him.

A sudden crash jarred the Jedi master from his memories. He could sense the being aboard the ship, a presence he had not felt in a long while. Or rather, that he hadn't been following for the past year or so.

There was concern; for Leia. for..he wasn't quite sure, but droids? For Han. For..Chewbacca?

Yoda smiled. He still remembered the runt of the litter carrying him to escape. And he had found himself aligned with the new hope of the galaxy.

The Jedi master left his home, slowly making his way to the crash site. It was as he said before; the boy did not know of his parentage. He did not know of the horror. One day, he would know. But before then, he would make sure the boy was ready.

Redeem your soul, this boy can. Hope there is, for you, Anakin.

"...like we're being watched."

Yoda froze at the sight of a blaster.

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**A/N:** Yeah..I know it wasn't that good. And for those who forgot, Luke's first line to Yoda is, "..like we're being watched."  
Oh, and the mention of Yoda's empathy? Well, Obi Wan's line in "A New Hope" has always convinced me that Jedi Masters have a great deal of empathy for everything...including the evil. 


End file.
